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Last weekend, Facebook discreetly launched a new mobile feature: Friendshake, a.k.a. Find Friends Nearby. Initially available via the mobile website and then offered — while still subtly hidden — in the app version of Facebook, the feature was designed to allow users to find potential new friends located in local proximity. And just as quickly and quietly as the feature appeared, it was pulled from the Facebook experience. Read More
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emailFacebook, Dropbox, LinkedIn: Flaw in Some Mobile Apps Exposes Users to Identity Theft
Posted on Wednesday, April 18th, 2012 by Elaine Rigoli
There is a newly discovered security flaw exposing iOS and possibly Android smartphone users to identity theft, specifically when using the mobile apps for Facebook, Dropbox, and LinkedIn.
The problem is that the apps’ security settings save users’ authentication keys in unencrypted plain text files (called plists) and that could easily be stolen by copying the plist from one iOS or Android device and pasting it into the same directory on another device.
Facebook has issued a statement, effectively blaming the security gaffe on jailbroken devices: Read More
Clean Up Your App Permissions in 2012: The Social Media Privacy Report
Posted on Friday, January 13th, 2012 by Jillian Ryan
You give third-parties permission to access your data and information every day when you use social sites like Facebook and LinkedIn. Clean up those permissions now with a new privacy and security focused site, MyPermissions.org. Read More
Consumer Reports Survey: Social Networks and Mobile Phones Threaten Your Security
Posted on Tuesday, June 14th, 2011 by Elaine Rigoli
The June 2011 issue of Consumer Reports features a “State of the Net” survey, which interviewed 2,089 online households to study the various threats to our online security and privacy. The results? One-third of households had experienced a malicious software infection in the previous year. Almost 30% use their mobile phones without any security precautions, potentially jeopardizing bank information, medical records, and other sensitive data. More than 7.5 million kids under 13 were on Facebook this past year. This is despite Facebook’s terms of service, which requires users to be at least 13 years old. Jeff Fox, a technology editor for Consumer Reports, said “even more troubling was the finding from our survey that indicated that a majority of parents of kids 10 and under seemed largely unconcerned by their children’s use of the site.” Check out the entire article and learn some simple steps you can take to keep you and your family better protected online! Read More
Facebook Applications and User Privacy
Posted on Wednesday, January 26th, 2011 by Nikki Junker
The general public is concerned about the information Facebook is sharing. This concern is becoming increasingly justified as Facebook, and social networking in general, reach more users. Read More